Wrexham v Chelsea: Confirmed line-ups as Blues seek to avoid FA Cup giant-killing

Chelsea will look to avoid an FA Cup giant-killing and progress to the quarter-finals as they visit Wrexham in the fifth round.

The Blues come into the game on the back of an excellent result in the Premier League, as they came from behind to win 4-1 at Aston Villa.

But Liam Rosenior’s side will be wary of Championship play-off chasers Wrexham, who are sixth in the second tier. The hosts will be desperate to take their fairytale rise under the ownership of Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, and have already knocked out Premier League Nottingham Forest en route to this stage.

101GreatGoals has the full team news.

Wrexham team news

Wing-back Issa Kabore is unavailable for Wrexham, while Nathan Broadhead is only fit enough for a place among the substitutes.

Sam Smith leads the line for Wrexham, as he is preferred to Kieffer Moore up front.

Wrexham: Okonkwo, Cleworth, Hyam, Doyle, Longman, Dobson, Vyner, Thomason, O’Brien, Rathbone, Smith.

Wrexham substitutes: Barnett, Broadhead, Brunt, Keillor-Dunn, Moore, Rodriguez, Scarr, Ward, Windass.

Chelsea team news

Robert Sanchez is back in goal for Chelsea after being dropped for the win over Villa, with Liam Rosenior making nine changes in total from that game.

Alejandro Garnacho and Jorrel Hato are the only two players to retain their place.

There is no place in the squad for Cole Palmer as Chelsea rotate with one eye on their Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain next week. Joao Pedro, hat-trick hero against Villa, is on the bench.

Chelsea: Sanchez, Acheampong, Tosin (c), Badiashile, Sarr, Hato, Lavia, Santos, Neto, Garnacho, Delap

Chelsea Substitutes: Sharman-Lowe, Gusto, James, Chalobah, Cucurella, Essugo, Derry, Guiu, Joao Pedro

Where to watch Wrexham v Chelsea: TV channel, live online streams

Kick-off on Saturday is at 17:45 GMT (12:45 ET / 09:45 PT). Live TV coverage in the UK is on BBC One, BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website, TNT Sports 2 and the Discovery Plus app.

TNT Sports costs £29.99 a month through Discovery Plus, which includes Eurosport and entertainment and is available on a vast range of devices including smart TVs and gaming consoles.

Wrexham v Chelsea stats

• Wrexham have lost one of their last nine matches in all competitions (W6 D2), winning each of the last three
• Having won two home ties by knocking out Championship club Ipswich Town following a win over Premier League side Nottingham Forest on penalties, this is Wrexham’s longest FA Cup run since they reached the 1996/97 quarter-finals
• They have alternated between progressing (5) and being eliminated (4) from their last nine FA Cup ties against top-flight opponents
• Before beating Forest, their previous such encounter was a 3-1 defeat to Stoke City in January 2015
• Only Ipswich (34) and leaders Coventry City (36) have scored more home goals than Wrexham (33), in this season’s second tier, although the 28 they have conceded on their own turf means only bottom side Sheffield Wednesday (38) have a worse record in that respect
• Neto scored a hat-trick for Chelsea at Hull, with striker Liam Delap producing three assists, one of which was for Estevao
• Chelsea have progressed from 63 of their last 65 FA Cup ties against sides from outside the Premier League, the exceptions being that defeat to Bradford and a 1-0 loss to Barnsley in 2007/08
• Fernandez, who played for 30 minutes at Hull, has been involved in five goals in eight goal FA Cup appearances for Chelsea (3 goals, 2 assists), as well as contributing four goals and two assists in nine domestic cup appearances against sides from a lower division
• Only leaders Arsenal (32) have taken more Premier League points away this season than Chelsea (25), who have scored the most goals on the road in the 2025/26 division (30, with the Gunners holding the next-best total of 26)
• Arsenal (14) and Manchester United (13) are the only teams who can better Chelsea’s total of eight FA Cup triumphs. Only United (9) have been runners-up more often than the Blues (8)